Hong Kong’s ethnic minorities hailed by city’s Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung, who says ‘their potential should not be overlooked’

Hong Kong’s number two official has hailed the contribution of the 263,000 people who are members of the city’s ethnic minority groups, praising them as “an important source of manpower supply” and that “their potential should not be overlooked”.

Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung Kin-chung also said the government was committed to addressing the needs of ethnic minorities and providing necessary support, citing as examples, more funding to schools admitting non-Chinese speaking students, and more publicity and educational materials in ethnic minority languages to allow them better access to public health services.

Cheung’s remarks, made in a post published on his official blog on Sunday, came a week after a police water cannon truck shot bursts of blue-dyed water at a group of people on the pavement outside the Kowloon Mosque in a dispersal operation during an illegal march in Tsim Sha Tsui on October 20.

The water hit the mosque’s gate and steps, aggravating some Muslims there. The city’s leader Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor visited the mosque the next day with police chief Stephen Lo Wai-chung to meet Muslim leaders and apologise.

Several reporters, and bystanders including Civic Party lawmaker Jeremy Tam, Mohan Chugani, former Indian Association chairman, and Phyllis Cheung Fung-mei, executive director of the ethnic minorities concern group Hong Kong Unison, were reportedly hit by the water.

The chief secretary did not mention the incident in his blog post.

He stressed that Hong Kong, as a free and pluralistic society, “embodies rationalism, inclusiveness, harmony and diversity”.

“Like Hongkongers, generations of [ethnic minorities] have established their roots in Hong Kong with many of them born and bred here, calling the city their home,” Cheung wrote.

“The government has all along been committed to building a caring and inclusive society and providing comprehensive support for [ethnic minorities] to facilitate their enjoyment of equal opportunities and integration into the community.”

Muslim Council of Hong Kong appeals for calm after police water cannons spray blue dye at front of Kowloon Mosque

The population of ethnic minorities in Hong Kong has increased by about 70 per cent over the past decade. Excluding some 390,000 foreign domestic helpers, the number of people in those groups now stands at about 263,000, or about 3.8 per cent of the city’s whole population.

About 30 per cent of them are South Asians, including Indians, Pakistanis and Nepalese.

“As an important source of manpower supply for Hong Kong, their potential should not be overlooked,” wrote the chief secretary.

Cheung also said Lam’s policy address this month had contained a series of initiatives to help ethnic minorities, including more funding for schools that take in non-Chinese-speaking students, and more publicity and educational materials on public health services for ethnic minorities.

“To sustain the development of Hong Kong and improve people’s livelihood, we must put our heads together. Let us work hand in hand with [ethnic minorities] in Hong Kong to build a harmonious and inclusive society,” Cheung wrote.

The publication of the chief secretary’s piece also coincided with yet another anti-government protest in Tsim Sha Tsui on Sunday, of which one theme was to “protect Muslims”.

At Chungking Mansions, a building complex in Tsim Sha Tsui known for being a hub for traders from developing countries, backpackers and asylum seekers in Hong Kong, some residents appeared not to appreciate what the protesters had done.

A resident, who has been in Hong Kong for nine years, said she had not come across Cheung’s blog piece, but said the protests had made life more difficult.

“Life has become tougher since the protests. When the buses stopped, we had to take taxis to take my son to school,” she said.

Another man, who asked reporters to leave, said: “We don’t care about the protests. Separate us from the protest.”

The social unrest, lingering for more than four months, was first triggered by the now-withdrawn extradition bill. It has since evolved into violent display of dissent over Beijing’s interference, full democracy, and police’s handling of the protests.

Phyllis Cheung, executive director of Hong Kong Unison, urged bosses to change their mindset on so-called traditional ethnic minority jobs. She also urged the government to work out a suitable curriculum for members of ethnic minorities to learn Chinese.

“They can become a source of manpower supply to many fields, including finance, health sciences, retail industries, and become professionals such as doctors, lawyers, engineers, and accountants – only if they can speak and read Chinese,” she said.

“Most ethnic minority students are taught simpler Chinese, thus even after 12 years of education, most ethnic minority students’ Chinese proficiency is equivalent to that of a primary two Chinese student.”

She said most of the government’s support measures were just “band-aid treatments”, and it should “look at the root cause of the problem”.